Brewer's Log: Ancient Orange Mead, Brew Day

[nyquil_driver]

In each Gallon:

3.5 pounds of honey
1 clove
1 blood orange
1 cinnamon stick
1 pinch of allspice and nutmeg
25 raisins
1 tsp Fleischmann's active dry bread yeast

Heat, mix, cool, pitch, lock, leave for 2 months. Easy-Peasy. It's already bubbling away.

Comments

[silentorpheus]

You've got them reasonably full - watch out for blow off the first few days. Then top them up with water after day 5 or 6 and you'll be good to go. :-)

These go quicker when warmer (75°+) but normal room temps will be fine, just might add a couple days to the total time. Unlike beer, ignore the airlock as an indicator - when it's dead clear it's ready.

[nyquil_driver]

Here's hoping I've got the stoppers in tight enough, and I don't come home to a shelf full of foam.

[7redmonkeys]

We are truly invading your house to pillage ( uh "sample") your home made booze.

[grumpymonkey]

Lovely, I hope I can sample some about the time the snow melts and the sun shines!

Although your pic is disturbing in some ways. The lava lamp ALSO appears to be full of mead... an interesting invention if it is. Also... is that Kaiser's Vodka on the shelf next to it? What in the wide, wide world of sports are you doing with THAT? Is that in case you drink the lava lamp before you drain out the goo? Probably should move that bottle, before people make bad assumptions that it's an ingredient!

[silentorpheus]

You use shitty vodka in the airlock as a substitute for water. That way if any drips into the mead, or if the pressure changes (temp drop) and liquid is sucked from the airlock into the jug, it's sanitary/sterile-ish.

[nyquil_driver]

^^^ What he said. I asked for the cheapest vodka possible, and I got Kasser's, which is made in Jersey. NEW Jersey.

And no, the Lava Lamp is just an orange lava lamp. No mead therein. That would be weird.

Oh, and you can see the boxed and stacked brown ale over on the left there :)

[grumpymonkey]

Learn something new every day. Whodathunk that Jersey vodka would find a better use than cleaning engine grease or killing brain cells?

[silentorpheus]

My oaked orange mead is already clear, and the cranberry variation is mostly clear. I think I may rack them in the next day or so, let them finish clearing for a week in a new jug, then bottle. So by the time your beer is carb-ed, I should have a couple batches ready as well. What say we have a tasting party? :-)

[nyquil_driver]

It is on.

[solarmus]

I say we sacrifice a fire-baptized beast of some sort to the fermentation gods for the occasion. (since it should be grillin season)

nom nom nom

[silentorpheus]

That sounded like Tim volunteering his house, to me. :-)